The Bar
Council said today that it would not be part of the committee to study
the regulation of political funds, adding that it wants investigations
into the RM2.6 billion found in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's
private accounts be completed first.

Malaysian
Bar president Steven Thiru said that the current focus should instead
be on an independent and comprehensive investigation into the
allegations against the prime minister.

"The
discourse on these new laws should await the completion of the ongoing
investigation into the transfer of the funds. This is, in particular,
because a donation is still within the definition of ‘gratification’
under the MACC Act 2009.

"This
is not the time to indulge in side issues that could be perceived as a
smokescreen to cover up wrongdoing in this matter," he said in a
statement early this morning.

In
fact, Thiru said, the proposal made by Najib himself on Friday could be
seen as an attempt to divert attention from the investigation into the
prime minister and the money deposited into his accounts.

"Indeed,
the proposal to set up the committee will invariably be seen as an
attempt to divert attention from the investigation, or to create a
convenient distraction from the serious allegations of corruption as
well as the ramifications of these allegations, if proven to be true.

"The proposal should not be a device to diminish the importance of the investigation," he added.

This
comes after Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Paul Low
told The Malaysian Insider that the Bar Council and Transparency
International-Malaysia (TI-M) would be among the groups taking part in
the national consultative committee on political funding.

Low,
who is the minister in charge of governance and integrity tasked with
heading the committee and selecting its members, said the committee
would be apolitical and would include those with strong knowledge on the
subject of political funding.

However,
Thiru said that the Bar had yet to be approached to serve on the
committee, adding that although it had worked with the government and
continued to do so on other areas of law reform, it did not intend to
participate in this one.

"It
has been recognised for some time that there is a need for laws to
govern political funding. However, no steps appear to have been taken on
the matter," he said.

"The
subject has now been brought up, rather suddenly, after the recent
disclosures by The Wall Street Journal and Sarawak Report concerning the
transfer of funds to the prime minister's private bank accounts, and
the declaration by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) that
RM2.6 billion of the funds were a 'donation'."

Former
Malaysian Bar president Lim Chee Wee also warned that the majority of
Malaysians saw Najib’s announcement of the panel as an attempt by the
prime minister to shift the spotlight from the RM2.6 billion found in
his private accounts.

Lim,
who is a member of MACC’s Operations Review Panel, said given the
circumstances leading to Najib's announcement, the majority of
Malaysians saw it as an insincere move to divert attention from the
perceived wrong of the alleged donation.

In
announcing the committee, Najib said that the national consultative
committee on political funding would develop a plan to ensure
transparency and governance over party funds.

He
said it was a necessary move to ensure healthy politics, adding that he
had mooted proposals to regulate political funding since 2009 but did
not receive any response.

News
of the panel came amid debate over political funding practices in
Malaysia, which has no laws to regulate the amount of donations or
disclosure of donors' identities.

Controversy was triggered after MACC said that the RM2.6 billion in Najib's personal bank accounts was political donation.

Najib
and other Umno leaders have said there is nothing wrong with him as
party president holding such funds in his personal accounts for the
party. – August 17, 2015.

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